Considerable controversy has recently heightened over professional golfers' use of long putters anchored to the body by either impaling the butt end of the putter shaft into the golfer's abdomen (belly putter) or holding the butt end with one of the golfer's hands on the shaft butt end resting firmly against the central thoracic area of the golfer. These uses have been informally termed unfair advantages by golfing regulatory bodies (USGA and R&A) and may be ruled illegal for professional golfers at the time of the next rule changes, probably 2016.
Such rulings, however, have little influence over disabled golfers and amateurs in general. Amateur golfers around the world, particularly those over 30 years of age, usually develop what is called the “yips” in their putting strokes, an involuntary jerking motion, that sends the ball off line, short, or long the target—the hole.
Thus, a system that aids in the elimination of this problem will have substantial benefits for many millions of golfers around the world that value good play over technical and emotionally intrusive rules that apply only to the several hundred golfers playing upper level professional golf.
The following patents and patent publications have been found in a preliminary patent search:
InventorPat. No.Issue DateCandow5,024,438Jun. 18, 1991Beil5,125,657Jun. 30, 1992Voyer5,209,474May 11, 1993Diley5,342,055Aug. 30, 1994Martinez5,904,624May 18, 1999Schuster6,491,591Dec. 10, 2002D'Angelo, et al.6,533,676Mar. 18, 2003